Valérie Plante and Bruno Marchand are ‘incompetent mayors,’ Pierre Poilievre says on social media
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Quebec City mayor accuses federal Tory boss of engaging in “petty politics,” while Montreal mayor criticizes him for being unclear on how funding for housing in Quebec works.
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Published Jan 18, 2024 • Last updated 13 hours ago • 3 minute read
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante criticized Pierre Poilievre for not “understanding that in Quebec, federal funding for housing does NOT go through the cities.” Photo by John Mahoney /Montreal Gazette; Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre on Thursday described Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante and Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand as “incompetent.”
In a post on the social media network X, the federal politician criticized Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government for sending “billions” to the two mayors despite what he describes as a “massive drop in construction in Quebec.”
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Poilievre touted his own promise to base federal funding on municipalities’ effectiveness in increasing the housing supply in their respective territories.
Poilievre also shared a quote from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. analyst Francis Cortellino in a Jan. 16 report by Radio-Canada. “In Quebec, there have never been so few houses built since 1955, the year data began to be collected,” the statement reads.
A CMHC report noted a seven per cent decrease in housing starts — the start of construction on a new residence — in Canadian population centres of at least 10,000 people.
There were 223,513 housing starts in those areas in 2023, compared to 240,590 in 2022.
The decline was mainly due to a 25 per cent drop in single-family housing starts.
Trudeau’s government, with its Housing Accelerator Fund, intends to force municipalities to reduce the bureaucracy surrounding the issuance of building permits, for example. In other words, if municipal administrations want to get their share, they must agree to streamline their processes.
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Reacting to Poilievre’s comments, Marchand accused the Conservative leader of engaging in “petty politics.”
“Poilievre’s ‘common sense’ is to insult the elected officials of Quebec,” Marchand said in a post on X. “Frankly. It is not only contempt for elected officials but for all those who work on housing issues in our city.”
Le «gros bon sens» de Poilièvre c’est d’insulter les élus du Québec. Franchement. C’est non seulement du mépris envers les élus, mais envers tous ceux qui travaillent sur les dossiers d’habitation dans notre ville. C’est de la petite politique. Le Québec ne mérite pas ce mépris.
— Bruno Marchand (@brunomarchand) January 18, 2024
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Speaking to reporters later, Marchand denied Poilievre’s claim that his city is blocking construction. “We are actually in a process of acceleration.”
Marchand added: “For a man who wants to be head of state, to act like this … is not at all common sense. … When you want to be prime minister, common sense is to respect people.”
Plante, for her part, criticized Poilievre for not “understanding that in Quebec, federal funding for housing does NOT go through the cities.”
“Common sense is also to understand the financing mechanisms specific to each province,” she said on X.
Avant de traiter qui que ce soit d’incompétent, M. Poilièvre devrait comprendre qu’au Québec, le financement fédéral en habitation ne passe PAS par les villes.
Le « gros bon sens », c’est aussi de comprendre les mécanismes de financement propres à chaque province. https://t.co/g2HSRmr7Uz
— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) January 18, 2024
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In Quebec, legislative provisions prevent the federal government from giving money directly to cities without having first concluded an agreement with the provincial government. That said, cities still receive federal funds.
The Union des municipalités du Québec chided Poilievre for his comments, urging him to “avoid simplistic shortcuts and to show respect.”
Trudeau also criticized Poilievre’s statement, saying in French that it was an example of “condescension” and “ignorance for how things work between the federal government and the provinces.”
“I think it’s high time that he apologizes for his behaviour and for … attacking Quebec elected officials,” he told reporters at a news conference in Nunavut.
Two federal opponents also condemned Poilievre.
“What Pierre Poilievre said about Mayor Plante and Mayor Marchand is completely unacceptable and not worthy of a leader or a future prime minister,” NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said.
“I hope that Pierre Poilievre will understand that in Quebec this type of language does not pass and that he must apologize.”
Pierre Poilievre doit s’excuser à @Val_Plante et à @brunomarchand.
Ses propos ne sont pas dignes d’un leader.
Les villes et les provinces ont besoin de bons partenaires pour régler la crise du logement, pas de leaders qui les insultent.
Notre priorité c’est d’aider les gens. https://t.co/nGHR5WSquN
— Jagmeet Singh (@theJagmeetSingh) January 18, 2024
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Yves-François Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Québécois, said the Conservative leader showed “contempt for elected officials in Quebec. We can like them or not, but (Plante and Marchand) were chosen” by voters.
Y a-t-il vraiment quelque chose à ajouter à ce mépris pour des élus au Québec?On peut les apprécier ou non, ils ont été choisis. Lui n’a encore fait élire personne, personne au Québec. Ce gars avec le pouvoir… ma foi… ça fait penser à d’autres.Le rôle d’Ottawa, Poilievre ou… https://t.co/aFIpWFCd3R
— Yves-F. Blanchet 🎗⚜️ (@yfblanchet) January 18, 2024
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